Link TV is an awarding-winning national satellite television channel, which broadcasts programs that engage, educate and activate viewers to become involved in the world. Link’s programs provide a unique perspective on international news, current events, and diverse cultures, presenting issues not often covered in U.S. media. The channel is available on DIRECTV ch. 375 and DISH Network ch. 9410. Link TV is operated by Link Media, Inc. a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization.
Know the News is an online learning tool for journalism students and citizen journalists, exploring the issues that shape television news, including bias, authorship, authenticity, ethics, and media ownership. The website knowthenews.tv is designed to help users think critically about TV news, by framing news coverage in a global context. Know the News is based on Link TV’s original productions Global Pulse and Latin Pulse, which compare, contrast and analyze news coverage from more than 70 broadcasters worldwide. Know the News is funded by the John S. & James L. Knight Foundation.
Global Pulse, is a fast-moving and informative Link TV television and web series that helps you navigate the news of the world. Each 4 minute episode looks at the news, the world and ourselves in a new way, comparing and contrasting news worldwide, as presented by diverse national broadcasters. Latin Pulse, is a half-hour, bilingual English/Spanish news magazine on Link TV and linktv.org, which examines Latin American issues of relevance to the American public but are not covered by the general media - news and analysis on Latin America through the eyes of Latin American media. Global Pulse and Latin Pulse are funded by grants from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.
Evelyn Messinger, Director of Link TV's Know the News Project, is Series Producer of the Link TV news comparison series Global Pulse, and Executive Director of Internews Interactive, which was founded in 1998 to bring the public’s voice into US policy dialogue via digital technologies. In the 1990’s, Ms. Messinger served as Director of Electronic Media for the Soros Foundation, supporting independent media in East Europe and Russia; and as Project Director for Internews Network in Israel, the Palestinian Territories and the Soviet Union. Ms. Messinger was a television news producer and editor in the 1980's, whose credits include news and documentary programs for the BBC, France 2, PBS, CBS News, CNN and others.
Lee Callister, Project Coordinator for Know the News, has a broad range of experience in digital media production and management. He developed and launched new channels for Internet Television distributor Mediazone, corporate web sites, applications, and CD-ROMs for Digiville Webmedia, the Young Group, and Nolan Multimedia. He founded the non-profit North Bay Multimedia Association, and was a planning partner for the Digital Village Project at the College of Marin where he consulted on curriculum development and taught multimedia. Television credits include music, comedy, and documentaries for PBS stations, MTV, Showtime, ABC Arts, and Entertainment Tonight.
Lisa Amparo, Know the News Project Assistant, graduated from the University of California Davis in 2006 with B.A.’s in Film Studies and Spanish. Lisa also works for a film production company and San Francisco’s International Latino Film Festival. She has experience studying and working internationally in Spain, Cuba and Argentina.
Kathleen Tyner, Media Literacy Project Consultant. Assistant professor in the Department of Radio, Television and Film at the University of Texas- Austin, Kathleen has published various curricular materials about media education including Literacy in a Digital World: Teaching and Learning in the Age of Information and the award winning, Scanning Television II. She currently develops new media education programs, policies and projects internationally and is a consultant for new media and education research. Her clients and community service efforts include projects with the Miami Museum of Science, Texas Commission on the Arts, and UC-Berkeley Pacific Film Archives.
Paul Mihailidis, Educational Content Designer. Paul teaches at University of Maryland's Philip Merrill College of Journalism, is a consultant to Stockholm University in Sweden, and is the director of the Media Education Initiatives/Visiting Faculty at the University's International Center for Media and the Public Agenda (ICMPA). He has written extensively on media literacy and global media education, and is currently researching the effectiveness of teaching about media's influence in democratic society.
Jonathan Silvio, Link TV Director of New Media, manages video post-production for Link TV’s original broadcast programs, on-air promos and the organization’s Internet operations, including the design, development and maintenance of websites, applications and new technologies for Link and strategic partners of the network.
Paul Wicks, Link Technical Architect, assembles the technology and writes code that runs Link TV's Know the News Website. He brings a diverse mix of skills to Link TV. Graphic design, corporate business management and software development experience allow Paul to appreciate different points of view. The evolution of new media and its impact on communities is the focus of Paul's work.
Edge Driven created Link TV’s Know the News Video Remixer. With diverse experience in technology, online communications, and large scale product development, Edge Driven is focused on increasing civic engagement and developing technology for the greater good.
Definition is Link TV’s design and development team. They provide complete media solutions, offering a full range of design and production services for business.
The Salzburg Academy on Media and Global Change http://www.salzburg.umd.edu/index.php will test Know the News Beta. The Salzburg Academy is a global education initiative exploring media's role in global citizenship and civil society. Over 50 students from all continents, and a dozen faculty members, will use the Know the News tools during three weeks of intense study, in their process of answering two key questions for journalists: "How do news media affect our understanding of ourselves, our cultures, our politics?" and "How can we use media to better cover global problems and to better report on possible solutions?"
University of Miami School of Communication, which will beta test Know the News for the Fall semester, is dedicated to a global educational perspective and is committed to providing a socially responsible and ethically grounded learning environment guided by a diverse faculty of scholars, artists and professionals.
San Francisco State University Journalism Department’s Center for Integration and Improvement of Journalism, which will beta test Know the News in the Fall semester, engages in research that has had a national and international impact on journalism, with an emphasis on research about the coverage on ethnic minorities and issues.
